Shelley Duvall

Shelley Alexis Duvall (July 7, 1949 – July 11, 2024) was an American actress and producer recognized for her collaborations with director Robert Altman and for her roles as unique, eccentric characters. Notably, she won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress for her performance in the drama film 3 Women (1977). Throughout her career, she was also nominated for a British Academy Film Award and two Emmy Awards and participated in four films that were preserved by the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. Duvall launched her career with Altman's black comedy film Brewster McCloud in 1970 and continued her collaborations with him in various projects. Hesitant about becoming an actress initially, she gradually gained prominence through other characters, such as Wendy Torrance in Stanley Kubrick's horror The Shining and Olive Oyl in Altman's adventure Popeye. In the '90s, her roles became less frequent with performances like in Steven Soderbergh's thriller The Underneath and Jane Campion's The Portrait of a Lady. She left the industry after her role in Gabrielle Burton's comedy Manna from Heaven in 2002 only to return for her last role in the horror film The Forest Hills shortly before her death in 2024. Her mental health journey was highlighted in the media, and she passed away due to complications from diabetes.